A Virtual Battlefield Helps Keep Japan Alert

By CALVIN SIMS

Published: October 1, 2000

MOUNT FUJI, Japan—
During a recent violent rainstorm, about 300 soldiers from Japan's self-defense forces were hastily dispatched to Mount Fuji, where 100 or so heavily armed invaders had seized control of the scenic summit.

In the ensuing battle, which lasted two days but went unreported in the news media, Japan's ground troops proved little match for the well-entrenched enemy forces and suffered heavy casualties from intense shelling and hidden minefields.

As the brutal conflict unfolded, Japanese commanders at a nearby military base watched it live over short-circuit television, monitoring the position and performance of every soldier on computer screens.

The skirmish, of course, was a battle simulation. But though the soldiers were real, just about everything else -- the machine-gun blasts, land mines, mortars and artillery -- ignited only within the digital battlefield of an elaborate computer program.

It was the computer that informed soldiers, who were equipped with radio headgear and electronic guns, when they had been killed or wounded. The dead were required to stand at attention in the battlefield, while the injured were rushed to a make-believe infirmary.

''This was one of the most overwhelming exercises of my career,'' said Maj. Hiroki Fujii, a 17-year-veteran of the self-defense forces who commanded the Japanese field troops. ''When you see your soldiers being killed and injured one right after the other, it adds a sense of realism to the drill.''

In the more than half-century since Japan was defeated in World War II and formally renounced military aggression, its armed forces, which are limited by the Constitution to self-defense, have never engaged in real combat. In fact, computerized war games like the recent invasion simulation at Mount Fuji are as close as postwar Japanese troops have ever come to actual conflict.

But thanks to the country's scientific know-how and generous budgets, the self-defense forces have become one of the most technologically advanced militaries in the world.

In recent years, their role has expanded from defending national territory to providing emergency backup to United States troops stationed in Japan, taking part in overseas peacekeeping operations, and responding to natural disasters like the devastating 1995 earthquake in Kobe. As a result, the public image of its armed forces has never been better.

But Japan's self-defense forces are still far from a real military, and it is doubtful that they will ever be because of constitutional restrictions, Japan's deep-rooted pacifism and neighboring countries that have not forgotten the atrocities they suffered under Japanese military occupation.

''In a material sense, Japan's self-defense forces are a full-fledged military,'' said Shunji Toaka, who covers military affairs for the Asahi Shimbun, a major daily newspaper. ''We have the weapons and the technology, but for the last 50 years we have had no practical experience in war. We have thousands of guns but we've never fired any in battle. Not one military surgeon has ever treated a soldier with a battle wound.''

Under article 9 of the Constitution that the United States imposed on Japan after World War II, the Japanese people forever renounced war and the threat or use of force. Japan has interpreted that clause to mean that its military activities are restricted to defending its territory from attack.

As a result, Japan has no bombers, no long-range missiles and no aircraft carriers, and, theoretically, no means to project power beyond its own borders. Japanese soldiers who take part in international peacekeeping operations are limited to providing logistical and transportation support.

With the end of the cold war, however, and the growing threat of new conflicts in Asia, especially involving China and North Korea, more and more Japanese are calling for a reinterpretation of the Constitution or an amendment to give Japan's armed forces greater freedom.

Motoo Shiina, a member of Parliament who heads an independent party, said the time had come for Japan to revise its Constitution to clarify exactly what role the self-defense forces would play in the post-cold-war era. ''It's ridiculous that we still are debating this issue after all this time,'' he said.

The debate is unlikely to be resolved anytime soon, as the Japanese remain deeply divided over expanding the role of the self-defense forces. And the country remains content to rely on its longstanding military alliance with the United States, which has 45,000 troops in Japan, to help defend its borders and provide stability to the region.

For all the constitutional restrictions and historical sentiments, Japan has built its self-defense forces into one of the most powerful armies in Asia. Its annual military budget of $45 billion is the second largest in the world after that of the United States. The size of its forces and the sophistication of its weaponry are roughly equivalent to those of Britain, which has an annual defense budget of about $33 billion. Japan has about 236,000 military personnel, compared with Britain's 220,000.

The government spent more than $140 million to develop the battle simulation technology used at Mount Fuji. The complex program has an indirect firing system that registers virtual land mines and mortars and laser-beam machine guns. Each soldier is monitored using a positioning satellite system.

In fact, during the Mount Fuji drill, the battle was suspended for several hours because a thunderstorm raised fears that lightning might strike the soldiers, who wore heavy electronics and radio gear.

''Of course, we cannot reproduce each and every situation that may occur in the actual battlefield, but the major items can be duplicated in these simulations,'' said Gen. Yuji Fujinawa, chairman of the joint staff council for Japan's Defense Agency.

Asked what were the major security concerns facing Japan, General Fujinawa cited the unresolved conflict on the Korean peninsula and territorial disputes. Japan has long-running disputes with Russia and China over the sovereignty of several islands.

Photo: The control room at a training center near Mount Fuji where troops engaged in a computer-enhanced battle simulation. Since World War II, Japan's armed forces have never fought in real combat. (Kaku Kurita for The New York Times) Map of Japan shows the location of Mount Fuji: Japanese troops were mauled in a simulated battle on Mount Fuji.